I was going through the spring issue if “Take 10″ and saw an article by Lori Craig on Split negative stamping. The result is very cool! Basically you stamp the same image on different papers in different colors (embossing if desired) then cut them in half and match them up to the opposite color. Here’s how to do it :

Step 1. Cut 2 panels of paper the same size (I use 3 1/2” squares).
Step 2. Chose an unmounted stamp and pace it in the center of the paper. Place a stamp positioner in the upper the right hand corner. Place the mounting block on top of the stamp lining it up with the positioner.
Step 3. Stamp both panels with contrasting colors, emboss if desired.
Step 4. Mat the panel and attach it to the card.

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Last week I showed you how to get Copic results with Bic Mark-It Markers. Such a fun tecnhique for really bright well blended images. The drawback being that none of the Mark Its were very light so subtle shading was out…not so anymore! I dug out my Prismacolor colorless blending marker (I have used it for years to blend my wax-based Prismacolor pencils and it works wonderfully!) and it does a fantastic job blending Mark-Its too! Here how to get really light blended colors with the Prismacolor Colorless Blender +Bic Mark-Its:

My friend Tracy stamped this cute “House Mouse” design on white card stock and gave it to me at my Craft Night last week and I thought that this image would be fantastic for this technique. Click on the photo if you want to see more detail. First I colored the fortune cookies with peachy-orange then shaded them with mustard brown (I am making these color names up to best describe the Mark-It colors). Then I colored the mouse feet and ears with peach and light pink. The lightest pink was too dark for the cheeks so I took my Colorless blender (CB) and touched it to the tip of the light pink marker and used that to rouge the cheeks. For the Mouse bodies I colored the edges with the light gray then quickly colored over it with the CB pulling the gray inward. For the gray shadows on the box touch the tip of the gray marker to the CB and color in the shadows with the CB. For the blue border shading run the light blue marker along one edge the color over it with the CB. Add more blue by touching the blue marker to the CB and coloring with the CB.

Ahhhhh, nothing like a nice juicy marker (hey, you didn’t think I was going to say steak did you?) And there is nothing worse that scraping a dry marker over a lovely stamped image, fingernails on a chalkboard anyone!?! If you have dual tip brush markers hold on to your hats cuz you can re-ink them and save a ton of $$. Here’s how. You will need dye based reinkers, glycerin and rubbing alcohol. There are two ways to re-ink your brush tip markers. If you have Stampin Up, Marvy Leplume or Whispers you can use pliers (or your teeth) to pull off the plastic tip that holds the fine point writing nib, then you can squeeze a few drops of re-inker right into the barrel on to the sponge stick inside. If you can’t remove the nib from your marker (or you are scared to) you can squeeze some ink in to a shot glass and put your marker in brush end down and the dry marker will wick up the fresh ink. Buy say you do not have the exact color to re-ink your marker. Don’t fret. Here’s what you do! Find the closest color. If you need light pink and you have dark pink take the dark pink and add a little glycerin and rubbing alcohol to it, dip a q-tip in it and test it on a scrap adding more ink or glycerin+alcohol as needed. I like to keep enough re-inker colors on hand so I can mix up what I need when I need it. I usually by Stampin Up re-inkers but I have had good luck with a ink-jet re-inker kit I found at the dollar store too! If you have blender pens ( the clear markers that let you blend ink, chalk and watercolor pencils) you can rejuice them too! Just mix glycerin and alcohol in a cup and dip the brush end in! Easy as pie!

If you have stumbled on to this post it is probably 2am you are in the middle of a huge stamping project and your ink-pad has run dry! No worries, you can make thick luscious pigment ink with just a few supplies you may have on hand already (even if you don’t you can get all of the necessary supplies for less than the cost of 2 new ink-pads!)

You will need: A Plastic Spoon, Artist’s Gouache (pronounced “gwash”, it is a thick opaque watercolor available at art shops or large chain craft shops like AC Moore. I use the set of 18 colors by Reeves. Cost:$10), Vegetable Glycerin (available at a health food store) * If you just want to make clear embossing ink use only the glycerin, it is exactly what clear ink is made of, some companies add fragrance but glycerin is what makes the embossing power stick, it makes a great watermark ink too. If it seems to thick you can add a drop of rubbing alcohol to it.

Directions: Grab the ink pad you need to re ink. Squirt the gouache on the pad (if you need to mix colors to get the right shade you can do that on a piece of waxed paper of leftover plastic packaging.) Add a couple of drops of glycerin to the ink pad and work the paint and glycerin in to the pad with the back of the spoon. Grab a stamp and test it, if the image looks to transparent add more paint. You made need a touch of white to make it more opaque. If the ink is to thick or dry feeling add more glycerin. If you are truly in a bind and need ink now and do not have gouache raid your child’s art box for tempera or poster paint which is the same as gouache except it has more water in it so it may be more transparent but after you ink up your pad you can try evaporating out some of the water with a hairdryer.

Invest in the gouche and the glyceryn if you don’t already have it and I promise you will never buy a bottle ofpigment refill ink again!

BTW I came up with this when I was in the middle of a huge stamping project and my ink-pad ran dry!

Don’t throw away your old Cricut mats! You can make them sticky again by washing them in dish soap (like Dawn) with a dish cloth. Then blot off the extra water and let them air dry. Good as new. This works because bits of paper, dust, embossing powder and other crafty stuff clings to the mats and after a while they lose their tackiness. By scrubbing them gently with a soapy rag you take off the dust and grime but leave the adhesive in place! How about that?

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I sure have been hearing a lot about copic markers lately. Copics are a solvent based marker similar to a sharpie and available in a myriad of colors. I saw a you tube video where a lady made a card using Bic Mark-It markers (also solvent based) for the same effect. I just so happened to have the set of 36 Bic Mark-It markers so I gave it a try. I bought these to write on slick surfaces like plastic or metal. I always just used water based markers or watercolors for paper. The Markits have an advantage though, they blend, they don’t leave streaks or “lines” in your work and they are not water based so they won’t warp your paper and you can use them over water-based die ink stamped images w/o them smearing the ink underneath. I used a clear dollar stamp from JoAnns, stampin Up Basic Black ink and the Mark-Its. Work one section at a time. First color the dog’s body light yellow brown. Add more of the same color where you want more depth. Add a darker brown to the edges for a shadow. Continue in the same fashion for the rest of the card. Have a great weekend!